F 5^8 

.67 

.M 75 M 2 






'S£lm^ 


1 


■ 


■ - 




^ 




/' A 




^^^1 


L-^'^ 


i 


^^^^Hp :^ ntk 


H 


P 


'1 




H 


1'' 


■ yiM 


^^^^^^^^^^^^B '^-'^l^^^l 


^1 


■ : 


m 




^^H 




^i 


^^^^^^^^^^^^B-^ «^^^^| 


H 




'p 










^^ >;7-Z^-/' /^y^ Z.-<^^C 


p-<S?^ 





James Monroe, after whom 
Monroe Street was named 



Through the courtesy of 
Mr. Rufus C. Dawes 



Notes on the Monroe Street 
of Early Chicago Days 




1914 



Compiled by Edwin F. Mack 
Second Edition 
Published by 

Central Trust Company of Illinois 

125 West Monroe Street 

Chicago 






Copyright, 1914, 

by 

Central Trust Company of Illinois, 

Chicago, Illinois 

Gift 
\uthcr 



A WORD OF ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

TN gathering these notes about old Monroe Street 
-^ (from the River to the Lake), the compiler wishes to 
acknowledge the courteous assistance of Mr. M. E. 
Dahl, of the Chicago Historical Society, in the search 
among the books, pamphlets, maps and papers in the 
possession of the Society, from which much of the 
material of this little publication was secured. 

The compiler has also drawn heavily upon the 
monumental History of Chicago by A. T. Andreas; 
upon the later History of Chicago, in five volumes, by 
J. Seymour Currey, as well as upon other publications 
mentioned in the text. 

Among those whose personal recollections have been 
of service, special acknowledgments are due Mr. W. D. 
Kerfoot, Mr. Frank W. Smith, Mr. James Walsh, 
Mr. Nathan Diqkinson, Mr. Herbert Darlington, Mr. 
Charles M. Sturges, Mr. A. B. Adam and Mr. Frank 
O. Butler. 

E. F. M. 








.:»*' 



fcil^S-^^J ..''^':^ '. '^" 




^J 



^^ 











■j/3«Ktf::BiOEK±::;.-::.; ^ 



as 

r// Lnftd 




BAMCe M- EAST 






MAP SHOWING HUBBARD'S TRAIL 



Reproduced from part of a map ap- 
pearing in Andreas' History of Chicago 



OLD MONROE STREET 

FROM THE RIVER TO THE LAKE 



^ITA map of Chicago dated 1830, in the possession of 
'-^the Chicago Historical Society, shows the village of 
Chicago clustered about old Fort Dearborn, near the 
mouth of the Chicago River. The present location of 
Monroe Street was then out in the country, in the 
section of land south of the village bounded by Madison, 
State, Halsted and 12th Streets. 

This map shows the district on the west side of the 
River pretty well wooded, while on the east side of 
the River the woods extend not quite halfway to 
Hubbard's Trail (about the present location of Clark 
Street), leading to Danville. 

This trail was named after Col. Gurdon S. Hub- 
bard, who was the first white man to blaze a trail 
from Chicago overland to the southern part of the 
State, instead of following the course of the rivers, as 
had been done previously. 

^JT Monroe Street is located in what is known as a 
^School Section (640 acres). Section No. 16 in every 
township in the State of Illinois was granted to the 
State by the U. S. Government for the use of the 
schools. The school section in this township was 
bounded by Madison Street on the north, 12th Street 
on the south, State Street on the east and Halsted 
Street on the west. 

^JTIn order to raise money for school purposes, an 
^auction sale was held on October 21, 1833, and con- 
tinued for five days, in the first Tremont House, 
located at that time on the northwest corner of Dear- 
born and Lake Streets. 



First Map 
of Chicago 



Hubbard's 
Trail 



Big Real 

Estate 

Auction 



$6.72 an 
Acre 



Golden 

Jones' 

Purchase 



Original 
Town Limits 



Naming of 

Monroe 

Street 



Out of 140 blocks comprising the school section, 
all but four blocks were sold for a total of $38,619.47, 
or an average of $6.72 an acre. One of the four 
blocks remaining for school use was the block bounded 
by Monroe, Dearborn, State and Madison Streets. 

^TTIt was at the foregoing auction sale that Benjamin 
^^ Jones (also known as "Golden Jones" on account of 
his wealth) on October 22, 1833, purchased from the 
State of Illinois, Lot 2, Block 117, upon which the 
Central Trust Company of Illinois now stands, for 
the sum of $78, being about the price today of one 
sq. ft. of the 16,920 sq. ft. in this lot. 

This lot appears to have passed out of the Jones 
family April 13, 1868, through a deed given by the 
executors of the estate of William Jones, father of 
Fernando Jones, to John M. Douglas for $58,500. Mr. 
Douglas was at that time President of the Illinois 
Central Railroad. 

^ir Monroe Street was not within the original limits 
<--*^of Chicago when it was incorporated as a town on 
August 12, 1833, the southern limits of the town at 
that time being Madison Street. 

However, the southern town limits were extended 
on November 6, 1833, as far south as Jackson Street; 
and on that date, therefore, Monroe Street became 
part of the town of Chicago. 

Chicago was incorporated as a city March 4, 1837. 

JTTThe Chicago Democrat, in its issue of December 3, 
^1833 (in the files of the Chicago Historical Society), 
contains an ordinance passed by the Town Council 
on November 7th which was rather remarkable for 
the number and scope of its provisions. 



The second paragraph of this ordinance reads as 
follows : 

"BE IT FURTHER ORDAINED that the first street in 
said town, south of Washington Street, be named Madison Street; 
the second street shall be named Monroe Street; the third shall be 
named Adams Street and the fourth shall be named Jackson 
Street." 

^jr Among the other articles of this comprehensive 
*-*^ordinance, paragraph 3 ordains: 

"That from and after the first day of December next, every 
owner of any hog, sow or pig found running at large in said town 
without having a ring in its nose or yoke on its neck, shall be liable 
to a fine of two dollars for each and every offence." 

Another paragraph of the same ordinance pre- 
scribes in considerable detail how the citizens of Chicago 
shall run their stovepipes through the ceilings and roofs 
of their houses. 

O* Referring to paragraph 3 of the foregoing ordi- 
^nance, it should be stated that by 1842 hogs roaming 
about the streets of Chicago had become such an un- 
mitigated nuisance that an ordinance was passed on 
April 21st of that year prohibiting them from running 
at large in the streets, even when provided with rings 
in their noses or yokes on their necks. 

^TT James Monroe, after whom Monroe Street was 
^ named, was the fifth President of the United States, 
his two terms of office as President extending from 
1817 to 1825. Besides the office of President, Monroe 
also distinguished himself in other political offices, 
principally as United States Senator, Minister to 
France, Spain and England, and as Governor of Vir- 
ginia. 

Monroe's name will always be best remembered in 
connection with the Monroe Doctrine, which was 



Monroe 

Street 

Named 



Primitive 
Conditions 



The Hog 
Question 
Again 



James 
Monroe 




BEFORE THE ORDINANCE IN REGARD TO PIGS 



10 



enunciated by him in his annual message to Congress 
in 1823, This doctrine was a warning to European 
nations against interference in the affairs of the nations 
on this side of the Atlantic. 

^ITThe following Monroe Street addresses appear in 

^the Chicago City Directory of 1844: 

S. Foot, Teamster, corner Clark and Monroe Streets. 

[Where the Fort Dearborn Building now stands.] 
Josiah B. Crocker, Whitewasher, Clark Street, corner 

of Monroe. 
Nathaniel F. Butler, "res. Monroe St." 
Samuel S. Barry, Painter at Cushings, "House Monroe 

St., between Clark and LaSalle Sts." 
James M, Adsit, Carpenter, "House Monroe St." 

[Where the Inter-Ocean Building now stands.] 

In 1846 Mr. Adsit engaged in the private banking 
business on Clark Street, and continued in that business 
until his bank was absorbed by the Chicago National 
Bank at its organization in 1882. Mr. Adsit became 
Vice President of the Chicago National Bank, and held 
that office for a short time. 

^TTThe business center of Chicago from 1840 until 
^ about 1860 was on Clark Street, in the first two or 
three blocks south of the river. This was brought 
about largely by the construction of the Clark Street 
Bridge in 1840, 

Merchants and small shopkeepers sought locations 
in the neighborhood of the bridge, where the traffic 
was greatest ; and when both sides of Clark Street were 
occupied by commercial houses. South Water Street 
and Lake Street, for three or four blocks east and west 
of Clark Street, were filled up with business houses, 
hotels and offices of professional men. 



Monroe 
Doctrine 



1844 City 
Directory 



Business 

Center 

1840-1860 



11 












Hi! 







STAGE COACH ARRIVING AT THE SHERMAN HOUSE 

From a description 

12 



^TT William Bross, who later became associated with 
^Joseph Medill and others on the Chicago Tribune, 
in his reminiscences (Lakeside Classics) speaks of the 
sidewalk situation here in 1848 as follows: 

"The sidewalks, where such luxuries were indulged 
in, lay, in most cases, upon the rich prairie soil, for the 
stringpieces of scantling to which the planks were 
originally spiked would soon sink down into the mud 
after a rain and then, as one walked, the green and black 
slime would gush up between the cracks," 

^TTMr. W. D. Kerfoot, in referring to the condition 
^of Monroe Street and other streets in this neighbor- 
hood in the Fifties, says that the streets were frequently 
impassable for weeks at a time during the spring rains, 
and that driving over these frozen seas of mud in 
cold weather often gave one the sensation of driving 
over a rubber pavement, with the added experience, 
occasionally, of breaking through the crust into the 
mud below. 

^ITMr. Kerfoot tells two good stories of road condi- 
^tions in Chicago in those days, the first one of which, 
with some poetic license, illustrates general conditions, 
while the second one is probably based upon an actual 
occurrence. 

Upon one occasion, after quite a rainy spell, a 
citizen saw a man's head and shoulders sticking out 
of the mud in the middle of the street, and asked him 
whether he could be of any assistance to him. The 
man promptly answered: "No, thank you. I have 
a horse under me." 

In the days of the old Frink & Walker Stage Coach 
Line a coach drew up, one very muddy November 
evening, at the old Sherman House, located on the 
site of the present Sherman House. By means of 



Soggy 
Sidewalks 



Bottomless 
Streets 



"No, 

Thank 

you!" 



13 



A Stage 

Coach 

Experience 



Gas Works 

on Monroe 

Street 



Ten-year 
Franchise 



two stout planks the passengers were able to bridge 
the sea of mud and pass from the stage coach to the 
sidewalk. 

The horses were also able to struggle out of the 
mud that evening, but the stage coach was left there, 
to be pulled out in the morning. During the night 
winter suddenly set in in full vigor, and the stage coach 
was so firmly frozen in that it could not be taken out 
until spring. 

^TTThe south side of Monroe Street, between what is 
^now Franklin Street (which was not then opened 
through) and Market Street, was the site of the first 
gas works in the city, erected in 1850 at a cost of 
$105,000 by the Chicago Gas Light & Coke Com- 
pany. 

The ground between Market Street and the River 
was occupied by Walter & Rogers' coal yard. 

The lot on the southeast corner of Monroe and 
Market Streets was not included in the gas com- 
pany's property, but it had a little office on Monroe 
Street, just next to this corner lot on the east. The 
company's main office at that time was in the Dickey 
Building, on the southwest corner of Dearborn and 
Lake Streets. 

The gas holder was about halfway between Market 
Street and what is now Franklin Street. Soon after 
its location on Monroe Street the company extended 
its property through to Adams Street, where the retort 
was located. 

The Chicago Gas Light & Coke Company was 
incorporated by special act of the State Legislature 
in February, 1849, with the exclusive right to manu- 
facture, distribute and sell gas in the City of Chicago 
for a period of ten years. 



14 



The gas was first turned on in September, 1850, 
according to William Bross, who states that until that 
time people had to grope around in the dark or use 
lanterns. It seems, however, that the extension of 
the service was rather slow, for Mr. Bross states that 
it was not until 1853 or 1854 that the pipes reached 
his home at No. 202 Michigan Avenue. 

In 1850 the company got $3.50 a thousand feet for 
its gas. In 1871 the price was $3.00 a thousand; and 
it remained at that price until 1883, when it was re- 
duced to $1.25. 

The demand for gas became so great with the 
growth of the city that the company in 1867 erected 
new works on the North Side, on Hawthorne Street 
(now Kingsbury Street), between Haines, Hobbie and 
Crosby Streets. The Monroe Street plant was de- 
stroyed in the Great Fire of 1871, while the Haw- 
thorne Street plant was at that time saved only by the 
greatest exertions. The plant on Monroe Street was 
not rebuilt after the fire. 

The Chicago Gas Light & Coke Company was 
merged into the People's Gas Light & Coke Company 
in August, 1897, pursuant to an act of the Legislature 
permitting the merger of seven independent and more 
or less competitive gas companies in the city at that 
time. 

^ITThe Chicago Almanac and Advertiser for 1855 
Ogives the following business addresses (including 
boarding-houses) on Monroe Street: 

Mrs. Hendee, Boarding House— 43 Monroe Street. 
Dr. Thos. Bryan— 96 Monroe Street. 
Dr. C. V. Dyer— N. W. corner Monroe and Dear- 
born Streets. 



When 

Darkness 

Reigned 



Early 
Gas Rates 



Street 
Addresses 
in '55 



15 



street 
Addresses 



William 
Goldie 



La Salle 

Street not 

Opened 

Through 



J. A. Kent, Perfumer— 105 Monroe Street. 

Elizabeth Brock, Boarding House — 143 Monroe 
Street. 

Thos. Milner, Builder— 171 Monroe Street. 

H. Bradford, Grocer — 181 Monroe Street. 

Miss S. A. Heath, Select School— 186 Monroe 
Street. 

This school was taken down in 1855 to make room 
for the construction of North's Circus, referred to 
on Page 24. 

Wm. Goldie, Manufacturer of Sashes, Doors and 
Blinds — 216 Monroe Street, beside the Gas Works. 

Watson & Ross, Builders— 219 Monroe Street. 

W. Dorchester, Lumber Yard — Corner of Market 
and Monroe Streets. 

^TT William Goldie, mentioned in the foregoing list, 
^came here from Scotland, and in 1852 started in 
business as a building contractor. In 1853 he added the 
sash, door and blind factory on Monroe Street (about 
where Franklin Street is now opened through). In 
1861 he sold out and served through the Civil War, 
later returning to his old business. 

He built the first business block after the fire, the 
old Marshall Field Building, State and Washington 
Streets. Among his other buildings was University 
Hall at the State University, Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

^TTIn the Fifties Monroe Street was pretty well out 
*--^in the suburbs. Gager's City Directory Map 1856-7 
shows that LaSalle Street was open at that time from 
the river only as far south as Madison Street; but 
Bailey & Company's City Directory 1859-60 shows 
LaSalle Street opened through across Monroe Street 
to the south branch of the river. 



16 



^jr Until 1853 Dearborn Street was open only as far 
^south as Madison Street. In that year the east half 
of the street (33 feet) was opened through to Monroe 
Street by consent of the property owners, those on 
the west side of the street successfully fighting the 
opening of the west half. 

It was not until a considerable time after the Chi- 
cago Fire that the full width of Dearborn Street was 
opened through. 

^TT Monroe Street in the early days was not paved. 
^As a matter of fact, until 1848 all of the Chicago 
streets were simply country roads. After that date 
planking was put down on some of the streets, but 
not as far out as Monroe Street. 

Andreas, in his History of Chicago, under the head- 
ing "A Complete Record of Street Improvements 
from 1857 to 1871," makes the following references to 
Monroe Street: 

From State Street to Michigan Avenue— Wooden 
block pavement 1867. 

From Clark Street to Market Street— Wooden 
blocks 1869. 

From State Street to Clark Street— Wooden blocks 
1870. 

The first asphalt pavement ever laid in Chicago 
was put down by J. L. Fulton & Company in the 
spring of 1870 at the intersection of Clark and Monroe 
Streets. 

^It appears that in the latter part of the Fifties and 
^in the Sixties South Wells Street (Fifth Avenue) from 
Madison Street to Van Buren Street was largely the 
resort of the vicious and criminal elements of the city. 
One contemporary author describes that section of 
the street as "an aggregation of vileness." 



Dearborn 

Street 

Opened 



No 
Pavements 



Monroe 

Street 

Pavement 



Chicago's 
Tenderloin 



17 







AN OLD TAVERN 



Similar to "Under the Willow" 
owned by Roger Plant 



Labyrinths 

and 

Tunnels 



"Roger Plant's 'Under the Willow,' southeast Under the 
corner of Wells and Monroe Streets," quoting from Willow 
Bygone Days in Chicago by Frederick Francis Cook, 
"was the very core of this corruption. Originally 
'Under the Willow' applied only to the corner build- 
ing. But, with the progress of the war . . . one ad- 
joining rookery after another, both to the east and to 
the south, was added until the name applied to nearly 
half a block; and Police Captain Jack Nelson dubbed 
it 'Roger's Barracks.* 

"Patrols were never at a loss where to look for 
'strays' from the outlying camps, though this was by 
no means always the same as finding them, for Roger 
maintained a very thorough outpost system; and it 
was only by approaching these delectable precincts in 
character as sheep ready for the shearing that an 
alarm could be forestalled and escape from the 
labyrinth by devious passages and alleyways cut 
off." 

It appears to have been the popular belief at the 
time that there was a tunnel running from this saloon 
under Wells Street to the shanties and rookeries which 
then filled the district between Wells Street (Fifth 
Avenue) and the river. 

To quote further from Bygone Days in Chicago: Mrs. 
"Roger was a diminutive Yorkshireman, whereas Plant 
Mrs. Plant, a graduate from the purlieus of Liverpool, 
easily balanced two of him on the scales, with some- 
thing left over. 

"In his small way Roger was quite a character. 
Calling his place 'Under the Willow' showed his 
sentimental side." As a matter of fact, there was a 
large willow tree standing in Monroe Street, along- 
side Roger Plant's saloon at that time. 



19 




BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF CHICAGO IN 1857 
* Indicates present location of Central Trust Company of Illinois 



Through courtesy of Chicago Historical Society 

20 



Mr. Cook goes on to say: "And then there was 
Roger the humorist. Every window-pane of the den 
displayed on a flaring blue shade, in large gilt letters, the 
legend 'Why Not?' It is needless to say that the 
phrase acquired a large street currency. 

"The place was a refuge for the very nethermost 
strata of the underworld — the refuse of the bridewell. 
Only by seeking the bottom of the malodorous river 
could its inmates go lower — as they sometimes 
did. 

"So evil a name did this thoroughfare [Wells 
Street] acquire from its belongings that later, to fit 
it for trade, it was, on petition of fronting property 
owners, fumigated into Fifth Avenue." 

The Great Fire of 1871 performed a valuable 
service in cleaning out this district. 

^ While Mr. Cook states that Under the Willow was 
^-♦'^on the southeast corner of Monroe and Wells 
Streets both Mr. Kerfoot and Mr. Dickinson clearly 
remember that it was located on the northeast corner 
of Monroe and Wells Streets; while another early set- 
tler was uncertain as to the exact location, but was 
inclined to the belief that it was on the southeast 
corner. 

To settle the matter, the following letter was 
secured from Herman F. Schuettler, First Deputy 
Superintendent of Police: 

"The records in the City Clerk's Office show that a 
license for saloon was issued to Roger Plant, 171 South 
Wells Street. The records in the City Map Depart- 
ment show that 171 South Wells Street was at that 
time located at the northeast corner of Wells and 
Monroe Streets." 



Why Not? 



Change 
in Name 
of Street 



Conflicting 
Testimony 
Settled 



21 







NORTHS CIRCUS 



^irOn April 4, 1855, North's Circus came to the city 
^**^and, after performing on a vacant lot, Levi J. North 
and Harry Turner, the owners, erected a two-story 
frame theater on the south side of Monroe Street, 
east of Wells Street (Fifth Avenue). The building 
had 90 feet frontage on Monroe Street and was 206 
feet deep. 

It contained a performing ring 42 feet in diameter 
and seated 3,062 people. In the rear of the building 
there were stables for the horses used in connection 
with the performances. 

In 1856 C. R. Thorne became manager, and changed 
the name to National Theater. He engaged a stock 
company, and the theater was fitted up for legitimate 
dramatic work. 

In 1857 the place was re-adapted to equestrian and 
spectacular entertainments, but was soon again trans- 
formed into a legitimate theater, and was opened as 
such in 1857 by J. H. Wallack in Othello, Virginius and 
similar plays. Mr. and Mrs. John F. Drew appeared 
there in May, 1858. 

The house ceased to be profitable in 1859, and, 
after many changes, was sold. The building was 
allowed to fall into disrepair, but was temporarily 
occupied in 1864 by two companies of soldiers while 
waiting to be paid off. 

In 1868 the building was torn down and a brick 
business block erected in its place. 

^JTA large map of Chicago in 1857, hanging in the 
^*^ rooms of the Chicago Historical Society, shows both 
sides of Monroe Street, from the River to the Lake, 
lined with frame buildings, practically all dwellings. 
The block in which the Central Trust Company of 
Illinois is now located, for instance, was occupied by 



North's 
Circus 



Wallack 

Plays 

There 



Bird's 
Eye Veiw 
of Chicago 
in 1857 



23 




VIEW LOOKING SOUTH FROM COURT HOUSE TOWER 1858 



The first arrow indicates the home of 
Fernando Jones, site of Central Trust 
Co. The second arrow North's Circus 



By courtesy of the 
Chicago Historical Society 



24 



eight such dwellings, one of which, on the corner of 
Clark Street, fronted on Clark Street, while the other 
seven fronted on Monroe Street. 

The next block west shows a frame house on the 
southwest corner of LaSalle Street and a small frame 
building just west of that; while nearer Wells Street 
(Fifth Avenue) stood North's Circus. 

^TTThe picture on the opposite page was taken from 
*--^the tower of the Court House, in 1858, looking south- 
east. The building most conspicuous in the foreground 
is the First Baptist Church, then located on Wash- 
ington Street, corner of LaSalle Street, on the present 
site of the Chamber of Commerce. 

In 1864 this church was taken down and re-erected 
at the southwest corner of Morgan and Monroe Streets, 
becoming the Second Baptist Church. 

The arrow pointing downward at the left indicates 
Fernando Jones' home, on the present site of the 
Central Trust Company of Illinois, on Monroe Street; 
whereas the arrow to the right points to North's 
Circus, on Monroe Street. 

^TTThe following were some of the people living on 
^Monroe Street in the later Fifties and in the 
Sixties: 

On the northwest corner of Monroe Street and 
Michigan Avenue lived Hiram Wheeler, one of the 
incorporators of the Chamber of Commerce in 1863 
and a Director of the Board of Trade 1859-60. 

Directly back of this house, on the northeast corner 
of Monroe and Wabash, lived E. H. Haddock, who 
came to Chicago in 1833 and started a bakery, later 
establishing a grain warehousing business. 



Chicago 
in 1858 



Homes 
of Old 
Settlers 



University 
Club 



Powers 
Building 



25 



•iSffJi^M^r- 







AT THE MAISON DOREE 



After a drawing made from 
description by old settler 



26 



Across the street, on the southwest corner of 
Monroe Street and Michigan Avenue, Hved Walter 
S. Gurney, President of the Chicago Hide & Leather 
Company. 

On the southeast corner of Wabash Avenue and 
Monroe Street was a good-sized frame colonial house, 
surrounded by large trees and shrubbery and setting 
well back from the street. This was the home of Eli 
B. Williams. 

Eli B. Williams came to Chicago in 1833, and 
erected a small frame grocery on South Water Street. 
In 1834 he was one of the organizers of St. James 
Episcopal Church. In 1836 he was a member of the 
original Chicago Charter Commission. In 1844 he 
became Register of the U. S. Land Office here. In 
1852 his name appears as one of the Directors in the 
Chicago Gas Light & Coke Company, while in 1853 
he was appointed Receiver for Government funds in 
Chicago. 

In the latter part of the Sixties Mr, Williams 
rented his home to Mrs. William J. (Anne J.) Johnson, 
who conducted a ladies' restaurant and ice cream 
parlor there until the time of the fire. 

The restaurant was known as the Maison Doree 
(gilded house), and was thoroughly high-class in its 
appointments and service. 

Many prominent men are still living who used to 
take their sweethearts to Mrs. Johnson's for ice cream 
on warm summer nights. 

On the southwest corner of Wabash Avenue and 
Monroe Street lived Mr. Horatio N. Heald, land 
agent, one of the prominent men of that time. 

On the northwest corner of Wabash and Monroe 
was a house — originally a frame house, but a brick 



Monroe 
Building 
Site 



Williams 
Building 
Site 



Maison 
Doree 



Goddard 
Building 
Site 



27 



Windsor- 
Clifton 
Hotel 
Site 



Dr. Gibbs 



Clairvoyants 



Palmer 
House 

De Jonghe 
Hotel 



Mentor 
Building 



house was later erected — owned by Mr. Joel C. 
Walter of the Board of Trade, who rented it to Mr. 
Rogers of Walter & Rogers, coal dealers at the corner 
of Monroe and Market Streets. 

James Carter, the father of Leslie Carter, later 
lived in this corner brick house. 

Mr. Walter himself lived right back (west) of the 
corner house, on the corner of the alley on the north 
side of Monroe Street. 

Just west of Mr. Heald, across the street (on the 
south side of Monroe, west of Wabash) and on the 
corner of the alley, lived Mr. John S. Gould, who had a 
shoe shop (No. 38 Monroe); while just west of him 
lived Dr. Aaron Gibbs, dentist, who came here in 
1845 and was one of the active anti-slavery men in 
the city during the Fifties. 

Across the alley, east of State Street, lived a clair- 
voyant. The only information which we have been 
able to definitely establish regarding her, from reliable 
witnesses (men) is that she was good-looking! 

Between this clairvoyant and the southeast corner 
of State and Monroe Streets was another clairvoyant. 
Madam Canfield. 

On the southeast corner of State and Monroe 
Streets lived the George Anderson family. 

On the north side of Monroe Street, between 
Wabash and State Streets, west of the alley, lived Asa 
Woodcock, commission merchant on South Water 
Street. 

On the northeast corner of State and Monroe 
Streets stood a little frame bakery. 

On the northwest corner of State and Monroe 
Streets stood the brick grocery store of W. F. McLaugh- 



28 



lin, who later sold his grocery business to Dr. Levi D. 
Boone's sons, while he himself went into the coffee 
and spice business. 

Dr. Boone was Mayor in 1855. He made the first 
appointment of a detective in Chicago by appointing 
Allan Pinker ton. 

George Boomer had a blacksmith shop where the 
Majestic Theater now stands (71 Monroe), and Henry 
Brinkworth a pork shop next west (73 Monroe). 

On the southwest corner of State and Monroe 
Streets stood J. D. Pain's brick drug store; and di- 
rectly west were the two-story brick stables of the 
American Express Company. 

Isaac W. and Dean Bangs, stove manufacturers, 
occupied the property next west of the Express Com- 
pany's property. 

West of Bangs Brothers, at what was then the end 
of Dearborn Street, stood a boarding-house and saloon 
kept by Silas C. Lum. 

Next west to the Post Office (northwest corner 
Monroe and Dearborn), in a red brick building, was 
a saloon, kept by Thomas C. Grayson. 

A few doors west of Grayson's, at 121-7 Monroe 
Street, was the second-hand book store and news 
depot of Bamford & Baldwin. 

On the northeast corner of Clark and Monroe 
Streets was the Eureka Saloon, kept by Augustus 
Dickerson. 

On the southeast corner of Monroe and LaSalle 
Streets, where the Borland Building now stands, 
lived Charles Schaefer. 

Freeman M. Williams, a carpenter, lived at 173 
Monroe Street and apparently also kept a boarding- 
house there. 



North 

American 

Building 



Majestic 
Theater 



Pike 

Building 

Site 



American 

Trust 

Building 

Borland 
Building 



29 



At 183 Monroe Street, east of Wells, was a saloon 
kept by a notorious colored man by the name of Steve 
Stamp. 

Sinai CIT^^ ^he fall of 1860 there was a strong reform move- 
Congregation <-^ment among the Jews in Chicago, and a considerable 
and Temple number of members of the older congregations with- 
drew and formed the Sinai Congregation. 

Their first temple was a one-story frame building, 
about 50 feet wide and 80 feet deep, on the north side 
of Monroe Street, just east of where LaSalle Street 
was later opened through. 

This building was originally erected for Trinity 
Episcopal Church on Madison Street. It was moved 
to its location on Monroe Street for the Sinai Congre- 
gation, who leased it from Benjamin Lombard, Presi- 
dent of the Real Estate Loan & Trust Company, in 
1861. The building was dedicated as Sinai Temple 
on June 21, 1861. 

Mr. Joseph L. Gatzert, of 111 West Monroe Street, 
and his wife were the first couple that were married in 
this first temple of the Sinai Congregation. 

The regular Saturday services were conducted in 
this building by the congregation until 1863, when 
larger quarters were secured on the northwest corner of 
Van Buren and Dearborn Streets. 

This large and prosperous congregation is now 
housed in the imposing temple on the southwest corner 
of Grand Boulevard and 46th Street. 

Dr. Hirsch Dr. Emil G. Hirsch has presided over the congre- 

gation since July, 1880. 

The testimony of the early settlers consulted differs 
as to whether the first frame temple, after LaSalle 
Street was opened through, was located on the 



First 

Couple 

Married 



30 



J^ff 

















"!.- '"# 



L 










SUNDAY IN THE EARLY DAYS 



31 



Winter 
Garden 
Theater 



Minstrel 

Head- 

ouarters 



Marline's 
Dance Hall 



Central 

Trust Site 

in the 

Fifties 



northwest or on the northeast corner of LaSalle and 
Monroe Streets. 

^TTOn the northwest corner of Clark and Monroe 
*-J^Streets, before the Fire, stood a brick building, the 
lower floor of which was occupied by a saloon, pawn- 
broker shop and barber shop, the upper part being 
known as the Winter Garden Theater (named after a 
popular New York theater of that day). 

The upper floor was also used as Democratic 
headquarters, and was sometimes referred to as Demo- 
cratic Hall. 

The property was originally owned by Solomon 
Witkowsky, and during the later Fifties and early 
Sixties the hall was known as Witkowsky Hall. 

This hall appears to have been minstrel head- 
quarters in those days, as the city directories locate 
a minstrel company there with J. H. Haverly as 
manager; while Billy Arlington, who was then a fa- 
mous minstrel and played there repeatedly, became so 
closely identified with the place that it was frequently 
referred to in the prints of that time as Arlington 
Hall. 

^jT Upstairs, on the corner diagonally opposite the 
«-^ Winter Garden Theater, i. e., the southeast corner 
of Monroe and Clark Streets, there was located, before 
the Fire, a very popular dancing hall, conducted by 
Mr. J. Edwin Martine. 

^JTThe picture on the opposite page represents two 
*-^ frame buildings which occupied the present site 
of the Central Trust Company of Illinois. They were 
burned down in the fire of 1871. 

The building on the right was erected in 1833 and 
was moved on this lot in 1835. 



32 




RESIDENCE OF FERNANDO JONES (al the left) 

Both of the above frame houses stood on the lot now occupied by the Central Trust Company of 
Illinois until they were destroyed by the Fire of 1871 



Site of Central Trust 
Company of Illinois 



Through the courtesy of 
Mr. Frank W. Smith 



33 



Fernando The building on the left was erected in 1850 and 

Jones' was moved on this lot in 1855. From 1856 to 1868 it 
^^^ was the residence of Fernando Jones, one of the early 
settlers of Chicago. 

^ir According to the city maps of 1865, the First Ward 
«-***at that time extended from the River south to the 
center of Monroe Street, while the Second Ward 
extended south from the center of Monroe Street to the 
center of Harrison Street. 

Old ^jTThe opposite picture shows the Post Office and Cus- 
Post Office <-l^tom House, which stood on the northwest corner of 
Dearborn and Monroe Streets in the Sixties, The 
main entrances were on Dearborn Street. There 
was an alley on the west and north sides of this build- 
ing, running in the shape of an L, from Monroe Street 
to Dearborn Street. At the angle of this alley Andrews' 
Restaurant flourished for several years. 

Dr. Dyer's The site upon which the Post Ofifice was built was 

Home formerly occupied by Dr. C. V. Dyer as a residence. 
Dr. Dyer received $26,000 from the Government for 
his home. 

An appropriation for this Post Office was made by 
Congress in 1855 in the amount of $84,000. By the time 
the building was finished, in 1860, instead of costing 
$84,000, as originally contemplated, it cost $243,000. 
It was opened for business on November 23, 1860. 

Honest The building appears to have been very sub- 

Construction stantially constructed. Henry A. Hurlbut, in his 

Chicago Antiquities, quotes as follows from an editorial 

in the Chicago Times in 1881 regarding the Post Office: 

" It was erected before the era of public robbery set 
in, and consequently it was substantial to a degree 
unknown in this age and generation of public works. 



34 






, ' " ■* 1 






THE POST OFFICE AND CUSTOM HOUSE 
Located, before the Fire, on the corner where the First National Bank now stands 



Frotn an old colored etching, through the 
courtesy oj the Chicago Historical Society 



35 



Light vs. ... Had it not been for the fact that the iron shutters 
Protection on the west side of the building had been taken off to 
give more light in the lower stories, it would have with- 
stood the fury of the flames on that fearful October 
day" [October 9, 1871]. 

Henry A. Hurlbut, who was a witness of the 
demolition of these walls, goes on to say in his book 
that, when the walls were finally removed in August, 
1881, to make room for the brick building erected at 
that time on this site by the First National Bank: 
"Every block or parcel of material removed proclaims 

HONEST MATERIAL and HONEST LABOR." 

The number of clerks employed in the Post Office 
in 1866 was 106. Today the number of clerks is 3,931 
and the number of carriers 2,069, making a total of 
6,000 employes. 

^JTDr. Dyer (see p. 34) appears to have been one of 
^the sturdy old settlers of Chicago. His name appears 
in the City Directory of 1839 as City Physician. 
Those who knew him represent him as having been a 
bluff, hearty gentleman of the old school who was very 
strong in his likes and dislikes and very free to ex- 
press them, but fair and square as a man could be. 

He was often consulted by real estate attorneys 
on account of his intimate knowledge of land conditions 
about Chicago, derived from his constant trips with 
his horse and gig to patients out in the country. 
The Doctor's Upon one occasion a neighbor remarked to Dr. 

Fence Dyer that his fence did not look so white that spring 
as usual. The Doctor, who was a prominent aboli- 
tionist, promptly replied that the reason for it was that 
there were not so many travelers that spring over the 
Underground Railroad from the South to Canada who 
could do a good job of white- washing. 



Some of 

Dr. Dyer's 

Traits 



36 



'-^r ^ -^ ^ 







THE DOCTOR AND HIS HORSE AND GIG 



37 



Lombard fW^^ 105-7 Monroe Street, just west of the Post 



Block 



Bessie 
Piatt 



Knights of 
Pythias 



Office Building, across the alley, as shown on the 
picture on page 35, stood the handsome Lombard Block 
before the fire. This block was built of marble, and 
was almost of the same size as the Post Office. 

The Real Estate Loan & Trust Company, of which 
Mr. Benjamin Lombard was President, had its offices 
in this building. The first secret service office in 
Chicago also had its quarters in the Lombard Block. 

^TTMr. William P. Campbell, who is now the manager 
<-^of the Central Trust Company of Illinois Safe 
Deposit Vaults, in 1868 boarded diagonally across the 
street (toward the east) from the present location of 
the bank on Monroe street in a two-story frame 
boarding-house kept by Miss Bessie Piatt. 

From the sidewalk he had to go down three or four 
steps to a board walk leading to the house. After the 
fire of 1871 all buildings were constructed at grade. 

^JTA fire insurance atlas of 1869, in the Historical 
^-'^Society's archives, shows the Eastman National 
Business College located in a three-story building 
on the northeast corner of Clark and Monroe 
Streets. 

This college at that time was reported to have 
about 1500 pupils, and was the western branch of the 
eastern institution at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., H. G. 
Eastman, L. L. D., President. 

^ITThe first lodge of the Knights of Pythias in Chicago 
<-^was Welcome Lodge No. 1, which held its meet- 
ings, in 1869, and from then on until the Great Fire, 
in the Grand Lodge Hall located on the top floor of 
the three-story and high-basement brick building at 
151-3 Monroe Street, directly across the street from 



38 




AN AUCTION SALE OF HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE 



See next page 



39 



Knights of 
Pythias 



Catholic 
Library 



Sidelights 

from 

Newspaper 

Ads 



Madam 
Ross 



the present location of the Central Trust Company 
of Illinois. 

The Knights of Pythias at that time had rented 
the two upper floors of the building, using the top 
floor themselves and subletting the floor below to 
the Catholic Library Association. 

The City Directory of 1870-1 shows that the 
Grand Lodge Hall was used on Thursday evenings 
by Welcome Lodge No. 1, on Tuesday evenings by 
Board of Trade Lodge No. 4, and on Wednesday 
evenings by Cosmopolitan Lodge No. 6. 

The Grand Lodge Hall on Monroe Street was de- 
stroyed by the Great Fire. The lodges moved into a 
new Grand Lodge Hall, in 1873, at the northwest 
corner of LaSalle and Adams Streets. 

^TT Among the very few display advertisements in the 
<-^newspapers in the Sixties having reference to any 
business or occupation of any kind on Monroe Street, 
the Chicago Tribune, under date of May 11, 1869, 
contained an announcement of an auction sale of 
"household furniture, pianoforte, linen, china, glass 
and effects of a large boarding-house of 21 rooms, at 
100 Monroe St., opposite the Post Office" (then at 
the northwest corner of Dearborn and Monroe Streets). 

Another advertisement in 1869 announces that 
Madam Ross, at 143 Monroe Street, near Clark, is 
"the only real scientific astrologist in the West . . . 
will unfold the hidden mysteries of the past, present 
and future . . . will bring together those long sep- 
arated and cause speedy marriages." 

^JT Monroe Street was still outside of the business 
«-^ center in 1870. There were a number of boarding- 
houses on the street before the Fire, and some of the 



40 




THE NIGHT OF THE GREAT CHICAGO FIRE 



These walls of the Court House were saved 



41 



Rooming 
Places 



The Chicago 
Fire 



Boarding- 
house 
Avenue 



business buildings above the first stories were ar- 
ranged for sleeping rooms. 

On the southeast corner of Monroe and Dearborn 
Streets, for instance, there was such a five-story brick 
building, stone front, before the Fire, known as the 
Shepard Block. The building had no elevators. 

On the night of the Great Fire three young men, 
one of whom was Herbert Darlington of Fred S. 
James & Company, were sleeping in rooms on an 
upper floor of this building. Mr. Darlington heard 
the noise of the engines dashing past the building, 
and got up to see what was the matter. He saw 
the sheets of flame and showers of fire-brands that 
at that hour of the night had just reached the river 
at Harrison Street. Driven by a strong southwest 
wind, the embers had already set fire to some of the 
buildings on this side of the river. 

He hastily dressed and went out to get a nearer 
look at the fire, but promptly returned and woke up 
his companions. "We had better get out of this in a 
hurry," he told them, "for it looks as if the whole 
thing is going to burn down." 

His judgment in the matter was correct, for it 
took but a very short time for the fire to reach that 
corner and consume the entire building. 

^TAs already appears from references in these notes, 
^^Monroe Street was quite a boarding-house street in 
the later Fifties and in the Sixties. 

The City Directory of 1859-60 gives the following 
boarding-houses on Monroe Street, besides those men- 
tioned elsewhere in these pages: 

Nancy Bishop, No. 71; Young & Van Evera, No. 
75; Kate Barmore, No. 88; Caroline Amberg, No. 117; 



42 




THE SHEPARD BLOCK 
Located on Southeast Corner Dearborn and Monroe before the Fire 



From a photograph, through 
the courtesy of Mr. C. R. Clark 



43 



Site of North 

American 

Building 



Majestic 
Theater Site 



Harris 
Trust Site 



Wm. Sinclair, No. 118; Aurelia Valiant, No. 175; 
J. B. Sontag, No. 185. 

0*A copy of The Underwriters' Association of Chi- 
*-l*>cago Publication under date of March 1, 1871, (in 
the possession of Herbert Darlington) shows the fol- 
lowing business addresses on Monroe Street at that 
time: 

65-9, on the north side of Monroe Street, corner of 
State Street, Campbell, McNeills & Campbell, linens; 
and Illinois Soap Stone Stove Co. Saloon in basement. 

71 Monroe, north side of street, corner of the alley, 
between State and Dearborn Streets — R. H. Countiss, 
retail grocery. Boomer's horseshoeing shop on the 
rear of the same lot. 

73 Monroe Street — Packing house of Henry Brink- 
worth. 

72-4 Monroe Street — American Express Co.'s 
stables. Before the fire these stables were located 
on the corner of the alley on the south side of Monroe 
Street, between State and Dearborn, where their 
offices stand today. 

Rear of No. 75 — Steam bakery of Blake, Warren & 
Co. 

88 Monroe Street— Mrs. McClure's Laundry. 

139-41, on the north side of the street, just west of 
the corner of Clark Street— Marder Luse & Co., type 
founders. 

140-2 Monroe Street — Frank Sturges & Co., metals 
and tinners' stock. 

151-3 Monroe Street— Offices and rooms of the 
Catholic Library (opposite present location of Cen- 
tral Trust Company of Illinois). 



44 




THE EXPOSITION BUILDING 

This building stood on the Lake Front from 1873 to 1892 



Site of the present Art Institute. 
From an old Architectural Drawing 



45 



North's 
Circus Site 



Exposition 
Building 



180-2, on the south side of Monroe Street, between 
LaSalle and Wells (Fifth Avenue) Streets— R. P. 
Appleby's Steam Picture Frame Factory. 

184-6 Monroe Street, in the same block, near Wells 
Street (Fifth Avenue) — H. E. Robinson, Agent, Steam 
Flour Mill. 

The two foregoing addresses were in a brick build- 
ing located on the old site of North's Circus. 

On the north side of Monroe Street, in the rear of 
No. 185, on the corner of the alley between LaSalle 
and Wells (Fifth Avenue) Streets— Tobacco Factory of 
John Watt. 

205-7, on the north side of Monroe Street, at the 
intersection of Wells Street (Fifth Avenue) — Stables 
of the United States Express Co. 

226 Monroe Street, between Wells (Fifth Avenue) 
and Market Streets, south side of street — Brown Bros., 
Vaults and Lights. 

228-30, south side of street, on the corner of Market 
Street — Chicago Gas Light & Coke Co.'s works. 

247-9 Monroe Street— John V. Farwell Co. 

^ITIn 1873 there was erected on the Lake Front an 
*-*^ Exposition Building, intended, originally, for an 
annual exposition of industrial products of Illinois and 
adjoining states. This building covered the block from 
Monroe Street to Adams Street, between Michigan 
Avenue and the Illinois Central tracks. Among the 
principal promoters and contributors were Cyrus H. 
McCormick, Potter Palmer and R. T. Crane. 

The Common Council granted permission to the 
company to use the Lake Front for one year, and 
periodically extended this permit. The Exposition 
lost money at first, but became self-sustaining in 1877. 



46 










GRAND OPERA IN CHICAGO IN 1885 
47 



Troubles 
Begin 



Theodore 
Thomas 



Baltimore 

& Ohio 

Railway 

Depot 



Music 
Festivals 



When the company paid its first dividend, the 
Common Council demanded rent. A long period of 
tribulation then set in, the Common Council demand- 
ing $15,000 a year and back rent amounting to $90,000. 
This rent question was finally settled in 1885 by the 
payment of an annual rental of $1,000 to the city. 

Beginning in 1877, Theodore Thomas gave a series 
of summer night concerts in this building. 

In April, 1885, the Chicago Opera Festival Associa- 
tion constructed an immense auditorium in the build- 
ing, seating 10,000 people, and gave a successful 
season of opera at popular prices. 

The Exposition Building was finally taken down to 
make room for the Art Institute, erected in 1892. 

^TTIn February, 1874, the Baltimore & Ohio Railway 
*^ which at that time obtained an entrance to the city 
over the Illinois Central Railroad tracks, rented the 
northeast corner of the old Exposition Building. 

Access to this depot was obtained through an en- 
trance to the Exposition Building on Michigan Avenue, 
leading through a long hallway alongside the Monroe 
Street wall of the building. 

The railroad used this depot until 1877, at which 
time they built a brick station just across the street, 
on the north side of Monroe Street, adjoining the 
Illinois Central tracks. 

The B. & O. Railroad occupied this depot until 
1880, when they moved to the Grand Central Station, 
on Harrison Street. 

^IT Music festivals were important events in Chicago 
^after the Fire. 

The second music festival, or jubilee, as it was then 
called, was held in 1876 in the Moody and Sankey 
Tabernacle on Monroe Street. 



48 



This jubilee was held under the joint auspices of 
the Apollo Club and Theodore Thomas. Myron W. 
Whitney and Anna Louise Carey were among the 
soloists. 

The Moody and Sankey Tabernacle was erected 
on the south side of Monroe Street, in the center of 
the block between Franklin and Market Streets, in 
1876. The tabernacle was a two-story building with a 
temporary roof. It seated 8,000 people. 

In 1877, after the tabernacle ceased to be used for 
religious and musical purposes, the roof was removed 
and three stories were added. The building was then 
fitted up for six stores, and can readily be distinguished 
today by the iron columns along the entire first story 
front. 

^TTThe five-story stone building still standing on the 
«-*^ southwest corner of Franklin and Monroe Streets 
was then occupied by Sweet & Dempster, hats and 
caps. 

Before the Fire this same corner was occupied by 
the saloon and hotel conducted there for many years 
by Jake Wolfner. 

^JT Among some of the more important buildings that 
*^were erected on Monroe Street soon after the great 
fire in 1871 were the following (our information being 
derived partly from the files of The Land Owner of that 
time; from Rebuilt Chicago, 1873, by Wing & Com- 
pany; from Industrial Chicago, Goodspeed Pub- 
lishing Company; and partly from recollections of 
owners and tenants) : 

1. The Bryan Block — four stories and high base- 
ment, on the northwest corner of LaSalle and Monroe 
Streets. Among the tenants of this building at that 



Moody 
and 
Sankey 
Tabernacle 



After the 
Fire 



49 



Northern 

Trust 

Site 



Fort 

Dearborn 

Building 



Pike 
Building 



First 

Fireproof 

Building 



Stood the 
Test 



time were the Northwestern Insurance Company and 
the Globe Insurance Company of Chicago. 

Dr. Bryan had completed an office building on this 
corner only a few months before the fire, which en- 
tirely destroyed it, and he at once rebuilt. 

2. The Foot Block, on the southwest corner of 
Clark and Monroe Streets. The first floor of this build- 
ing was occupied by H. H. Husted & Company, 
clothiers, who had been in business here since 1843. 

3. The southwest corner of State and Monroe 
Streets, a full five-story stone and iron building erected 
by E. S. Pike. The first floor was occupied by N. 
Matson & Company, jewelers, and the upper floors 
by A. H. Andrews & Company, school and office fur- 
niture. This building is still standing. 

4. At the time of the Great Fire, in 1871, the north- 
east corner of Monroe and LaSalle Streets, now the 
site of the New York Life Building, was occupied by 
the first fireproof building ever built in Chicago, known 
as the Nixon Building. It was not yet finished, but 
was already under roof. 

The building was so little damaged by the fire that 
it was finished one week after the fire and occupied at 
once by leading architects and business men. It was 
four stories high above a high basement, and after the 
fire it bore an inscription on both faces of the stone 
pier at the corner, reading as follows: 

"This fireproof building is the only one in the city 
that successfully stood the test of the Great Fire of 
October 9, 1871." 

The building was erected by W. K. Nixon, who had 
come here from Cincinnati nine years previous to the 
Fire. Among the occupants in 1873 were: 



50 




THE HONORE BLOCK BEFORE THE FIRE 

Southwest Corner Monroe and Dearborn, and extending to Adams Street 



In the distance, the Bigelow House (S. W. 
Corner Adams and Dearborn), destroyed in 
the Great Fire of 1871, on the very day 
it was to have been thrown open to the pub- 
lic. Courtesy of Mr. C. R. Clark 



51 



Tenants 
in 1871 



Elgin 

Watch 

Company 



Birthplace 
of Central 
Trust Com- 
pany of 
Illinois 



Otto H. Matz, the architect of the building; W. H. 
Cunningham, insurance offices ; Ogden, Sheldon & Co. ; 
Goodrich, Farmer & Co., fire insurance ; Leopold Mayer, 
banker; and Ogden & Scudder, real estate loans. 

5. The American Express Company on the south 
side of Monroe Street, near State Street. 

This building, erected immediately after the Fire, 
had five stories and a high mansard roof. H. H. 
Richardson, the noted Boston architect, contributed 
the front of this building as his ideal of American style. 
On the first floor the Express Company occupied 37 by 
70 feet. The remainder of the front on that floor was 
occupied by two stores. The entire rear of the building 
was given up to the Express Company's purposes. 

Above the Express Company's quarters was the 
National (Elgin) Watch Company. 

This building was remodelled in 1896 by the re- 
moval of the high mansard roof and addition of two 
more stories. 

6. On the southwest corner of Monroe and Dear- 
born Streets stood one of the Honore Buildings, later 
known as the Rowland Block, with a frontage of 50 
feet on Monroe Street and 190 feet on Dearborn Street. 

This building was erected upon the same site where 
it had stood before the Fire. It was five stories high, 
with basement, and was built of Cleveland stone. 

In the Seventies it was almost exclusively occupied 
by real estate men, the first floor being tenanted by 
Gallup & Peabody, mortgage bankers, who dealt in 
city and farm loans. 

This building was the birthplace of the Central 
Trust Company of Illinois, which opened its doors 
there July 8, 1902. 



52 




THE ROWLAND BLOCK 

Southwest Corner Monroe and Dearborn Street 

This picture was taken just before the building was wrecked to make room for the 
Westminster Building which now occupies this corner 



From a photograph, through 
the courtesy of Mr. C. R. Clark 



53 



A bold 
Move 



Part of 

Farwell 

Building 

Still 

Standing 



Majestic 

Theater 

Site 



7. The John V. Farwell Company moved to Monroe 
Street, west, just after the Fire from the corner of 
Wabash Avenue and Washington Street. They built 
and occupied a large five-story building with frontage 
on Monroe Street, west of Franklin Street. 

This move so far west caused great excitement at 
the time in the real estate and mercantile world, and 
caused a sudden rise in the value of land in that 
section. 

The five-story business block still standing on the 
northeast corner of Market and Monroe Streets is part 
of the block built and occupied by the John V. Farwell 
Company in the early Seventies. 

The original building erected by them immediately 
after the Fire occupied 40 feet in about the center of the 
block; but they soon built on both sides, until they 
built up and occupied the entire block on the north 
side of Monroe Street, from Franklin to Market 
Streets. 

8. The Cleaveland Building, on the southeast corner 
of Market and Monroe Streets, built by James O. 
Cleaveland in the summer of 1872. The building was 
five stories high and was occupied by Cleaveland & 
Johnson, hats, caps and furs. 

9. The Royal Palm, 71 Monroe Street (between 
State and Dearborn), built in the latter part of 1872. 
This building was four stories high and was occupied, 
on the ground floor, by a sample room, and upstairs 
by a billiard room. It was owned by John Garrick 
and S. L. Cather. 

An enthusiastic writer in The Land Owner of 
January, 1873, describing the Royal Palm, says of it: 
"Paris in the palmy and gorgeous days of the empire 
never boasted of such apartments." 



54 



^iriO. A picture of the present Palmer House in the 
*-^ course of erection is shown in The Land Owner of 
May, 1873. The picture represents work going on at 
night by the aid of powerful calcium lights. The 
building was then up six stories and ready for the roof. 

The writer, in describing the work of construction, 
says, among other things: "Mr. Palmer appeared every- 
where with his large lantern and cheered the men." 

Prior to the Great Fire the Palmer House stood on 
the northwest corner of State and Quincy Streets 
(present site Consumers Building), where it was erected 
in 1869-70. 

The hotel on the southeast corner of State and 
Monroe Streets had been begun by Mr. Palmer before 
the Fire. The excavation had been made and the 
foundation was in at the time of the Great Fire in Octo- 
ber, 1871. 

11. The Clifton House building, on the northwest 
corner of Wabash Avenue and Monroe Street, built in 
1872 (still standing). This building was occupied at 
first by the Clifton Hotel, the name being afterwards 
changed to the Windsor-Clifton. The hotel occupies 
all five of the floors above the first, which is given up 
to stores. 

^12. The Williams Building, southeast corner of 
^Monroe and Wabash. This building was erected 
about 1876 on the site of the old Williams homestead, 
which later became the Maison Doree, ladies' restau- 
rant. (See page 27.) 

The first floor was specially arranged for the 
Gossage Dry Goods House, with a large entrance on 
Monroe Street, but, by the time the building was com- 
pleted, Mr. Gossage for some reason refused to occupy 
the place. 



Palmer 
House 



First 

Palmer 

House 



Old 

Maison 
Doree Site 



55 



Edson 

Keith & 

Company 



Chicago 
Club 



De Jonghe's 
Hotel 



Canal 
Lots 



The building has a frontage of 160 feet on Wabash 
Avenue, and 120 feet of this frontage was occupied in 
1879 by O. R. Keith & Company, later succeeded by 
Edson Keith & Company, the wholesale millinery 
house now located on Michigan Avenue. A year or 
two later Edson Keith & Company took the remaining 
40 feet, paying an annual rental of $20,000 for the entire 
building. 

Edson Keith & Company remained in this building 
until January 1, 1900. 

^TTIS. The Chicago Club moved into its new club 
^house at 43-5 Monroe Street in August, 1876. In 
1879 a memorable banquet was given to Gen. U. S. 
Grant in this club house. 

In 1893 the club moved into the old Art Institute 
Building, southwest corner of Michigan Avenue and 
Van Buren Street, where they have been located ever 
since. 

The Monroe Street building is still standing and is 
now occupied by De Jonghe's Hotel. 

The lot on the northeast corner of State and Monroe 
Streets, upon the rear of which this building stands, 
was sold by the Commissioners of the Illinois and 
Michigan Canal in 1848 for $3,190. It had a frontage 
of 76 feet on State Street and 170 feet on Monroe Street. 

In 1827 the U. S. Government granted 284,000 
acres of land to the State of Illinois, to enable it to 
build the Illinois and Michigan Canal. The land lay 
along both sides of the proposed canal, from Chicago to 
Ottawa. 

Canal commissioners were appointed, who sur- 
veyed and laid out the original Town of Chicago and 
proceeded to sell off the granted land, including that 
located in and about Chicago, known as Canal Lots. 



56 



^Tri4. Shortly after the Fire, Edwin Walker, a stone 
*--^ contractor, erected a four-story, brick building (still 
standing) at the northwest corner of Monroe and Clark 
Streets. The lower floor of the building was occupied 
by a pawnbroker shop and saloon, and the upper floors 
were used for lodging purposes. 

During the Eighties all of the ground floor, except 
the corner (a shoe store), was occupied as a saloon by 
Mike McDonald, the well-known politician and 
gambler, and the second floor was used for gambling 
purposes, Mike McDonald's place was known, in 
those days, as The Store. 

During the later Eighties rooms on the upper 
floors of this building were used for lodging purposes, 
and as late as the middle of the Nineties were known 
as the Hotel Ross, being conducted by a Mrs. Ross, 
who was probably either the same Madam Ross who 
is referred to at that location before the Fire as an 
astrologist (see page 40), or some one of her kin. 

In 1901 this building was sold to the Hamilton 
Club, and at that time there was a saloon not only on 
the ground floor, but also in the basement, which was 
indicative of general conditions in that block on Clark 
Street at that period. 

The club added two stories to the building and 
moved into it on April 1, 1902. They used the five 
upper floors and the basement, subletting the ground 
floor for stores. On May 1, 1912, the Hamilton Club 
moved into its new clubhouse on Dearborn Street. 

This building is now named after the Chicago 
Transportation Association, which occupies the third 
and fourth floors. 

15. Crilly Building, northeast corner of Dearborn 
and Monroe Streets (still standing). 



Mike 

McDonald's 

Place 



Hotel 
Ross 



Home 
of the 
Hamilton 
Club 



57 




From an old wood cut 



THE MONTAUK BUILDING 

58 



In 1878 Mr. D. F. Crilly, the well-known building 
contractor, took a lease from the Board of Education 
for this corner, which had remained vacant since the 
Chicago Fire, in 1871. 

Mr. Crilly put up a five-story building for the 
J. M. W. Jones Printing Company. It was of sub- 
stantial construction on account of the heavy printing 
presses. ^ The north part of the building was occupied 
by the Indianapolis Paper Company. 

In 1888 the building was remodeled and two more 
stories added. 

In May, 1890, the Chicago Stock Exchange, deem- 
ing new and more convenient quarters necessary, 
moved from the Chicago Opera House Block, where it 
had been located since 1885, to this building, re- 
named, in its honor, the Stock Exchange Building. 
Here a hall 40 by 60 feet was dedicated to its use, 
located on the main floor on the east side of the build- 
ing. 

The north and west front of the ground floor was 
rented to N. W. Harris & Company. The corner 
was occupied by Edward L. Brewster, Private Banker; 
and next to him on Dearborn Street was the office of 
Charles Henrotin. The upstairs was divided into 
offices for general purposes. 

On April 30, 1894, the Exchange moved out of this 
building to the new Stock Exchange Building, on 
LaSalle and Washington Streets, and in April, 1908, 
moved to its present quarters in the Rookery Building. 

^Tri6. The first tall building or so-called skyscraper 
»-^in the United States, as far as can be learned, was the 
Montauk Building, on the north side of Monroe Street, 
just west of the corner of Dearborn Street. The build- 
ing was ten stories high, and was finished in 1882. 



Crilly 
Building 



Home of 
Chicago 
Stock 
Exchange 



Montauk 
Building 



59 







1.1.T 'VXI.T/Ul;! 



9 




RAND, McNALLY BUILDING 

This building occupied the site of the Central Trust Company of Ilhnois 
before the present bank building was erected 



From an old wood cut 



60 



From an interesting letter by Mr. William 
Holabird on the history of this building, we learn that 
the erection of so tall a building at that time created 
great excitement. 

Mr. Holabird goes on to say: "Most people de- 
clared that they never would go up in such a high 
building and we [Holabird & Roche] secured offices 
under very favorable terms. 

"Burnham & Root were the architects of the build- 
ing, and Mortimer & Tapper the mason contractors. 

"The foundations were made of coursed rubble 
stone or dimension stone, and alternate layers of rails 
or beams — I have forgotten which, but I rather think 
rails. The walls were solid masonry with iron col- 
umns, girders and floor beams; the columns and girders 
covered with tile, and the floor arches of tile. This 
was one of the first buildings where tile was used. . . . 

"I remember there was such fear of the strength 
of the wall that the flues, each office having a fireplace, 
were contracted so that they never drew very well. 

"It was certainly the highest building in Chicago 
used for office purposes, and I think the highest build- 
ing anywhere in the U. S. It was removed, as the site 
was used for part of the present First National Bank 
Building." 

^JTThe lot upon which the Central Trust Company 
^of Illinois' building now stands was cleared by the 
Great Fire of 1871, and remained vacant until 1880, 
when the building shown on the opposite page was 
erected upon it and was occupied by Rand & McNally. 

It was a five-story building in front and six stories 
in the rear, with a light court about 40 feet wide 
separating the two buildings. 



Tenants 

Timid 

About 

High 

Building 



Present 

Site 

Central 

Trust 

Company 

of Illinois 



61 



Early 

History 

of Art 

in Chicago 



Troublous 
Times 



Beginning 

of Art 

Institute 



In 1891 Rand & McNally vacated this building, and 
it was then occupied on the ground floor as a restaurant, 
while the upper floors were taken by printers. 

^TTIn 1875 the Academy of Design, which was organ- 
^ized about 1867, moved from the Volk Building, on 
the southwest corner of Michigan Avenue and Van 
Buren Street, into the fifth floor of the Pike Building, 
on the southwest corner of State and Monroe 
Streets. 

For about a year and a half the affairs of the 
Academy went along smoothly, but it appears that, 
owing to dull business and other reasons, the number 
of pupils fell off and the Academy got into financial 
difficulties. 

A board of twenty-five managing trustees was then 
chosen among prominent business men to manage 
the affairs of the Academy, but dissension crept in 
again after about a year, and the trustees withdrew. 

The creditors thereupon foreclosed their claims, 
and the effects of the Academy were sold at sheriff's 
sale. 

The pictures and other effects of the Academy 
which had been purchased at sheriff's sale became the 
nucleus of the present Art Institute, which was incor- 
porated May 24, 1879, as the Academy of Fine Arts, 
and continued to occupy the quarters in the Pike 
Building. Its name was changed December 21, 1882, 
to the Art Institute of Chicago. 

Under the capable management of W. M. R. 
French,* who is still Director of the Art Institute, and 
of N. H. Carpenter, who was then, and is still, its 
Secretary, the Institute began at once to prosper. Mr. 
French had also been Secretary of the Academy of 
Fine Arts for one year. 

*Mr. French died June 3, 1914. 



62 



In 1882 the Art Institute purchased the lot on the 
southwest corner of Michigan Avenue and Van Buren 
Street, where they later erected a building for their 
purposes, now occupied by the Chicago Club. 

The Academy of Design was considerably dis- 
couraged but not entirely disheartened by the sheriff's 
sale of its effects and started up again, in a small way, 
on the third floor of the American Express Company's 
building on Monroe Street; but the school was finally 
discontinued in 1884. 

All of the surviving members of the old Academy 
of Design have been made life members of the Art 
Institute. 

fTTAfter the Fire the old Post Office Building on the 
<-^ northwest corner of Dearborn and Monroe Streets, 
the walls of which were still intact, was fitted up as a 
theater by John H. Haverly and called the New 
Adelphi. It was opened January 11, 1875, and was 
the largest theater, till then, erected in Chicago. 

The walls of the building showed the ravages of the 
Great Fire and were one of the interesting sights to the 
tourist stopping in Chicago in those days. 

The appointments of the theater were rather 
shabby, but in the summer of 1878 Haverly entirely 
reconstructed and redecorated the theater, among 
other things removing the traces of the fire from the 
outside walls. 

It was in this rehabilitated theater that Colonel 
Mapleson gave his first seasons of Italian opera in 
Chicago, in 1879-80-81. 

In 1882 Haverly's lease expired, and the property 
was leased to the First National Bank, whose building 
now occupies that corner. 



First Art 
Institute 
Building 



Old Post 
Office 
Used as 
Theater 



Col. 

Mapleson 

and 

Grand 

Opera 



63 




HAVERLVS THEATER IN 1882 

Site of the Inter-Ocean Building By courtesy of the 

64 Chicago Historical Society 



^TTMr. Haverly built a new theater in 1882 almost 
«-^ across the street from his old location, where the 
Inter-Ocean Building now stands. This theater was 
opened by Robson and Crane in Shakespeare's 
"Twelfth Night." 

In 1885 the name of the theater was changed to 
the Columbia Theater, this name having been sug- 
gested by Miss Ellen Terry, who was playing in the 
house at the time with Henry Irving. 

The theater itself was burned down in 1900. 

^JTColonel Haverly appears to have been an ambitious, 
*-^ untiring genius, whose extensive theatrical ventures 
in some of the largest cities in the country did not seem 
to suffice to absorb all his energies. He provided the 
City of Chicago with high-grade entertainment, and 
deserves great credit for the risks he was willing to 
take in order to provide the best. 

He was a liberal contributor to the leading charities 
of the city and was personally very popular. He 
naturally became over-extended and suffered heavy 
financial reverses, losing most of his theaters, after 
which he established Haverly's Mastodon Minstrels. 

"Jack" Haverly, being by nature a good deal of a 
plunger, quite naturally took to the racetrack and to 
mines. Cook, in his Bygone Days in Chicago, says of 
him: "For a long time 'Jack' literally stormed the 
betting ring. He headed every auction pool (book- 
making at this time was unknown in Chicago), usually 
with a cool thousand." 

And further on, speaking of his promotions. Cook 
says: "The gold mines that he did not own in Colo- 
rado and Utah about this time were scarcely worth 
mentioning." 



Haverly's 
Theater 



"Jack" 
Haverly 



Race-track 
and Gold 
Mines 



65 




MONROE STREET IN THE 80's. 



View looking west from Clark 
Street. From an old engraving 



66 



^TTOn Monday evening, November 27, 1876, the 
^Apollo Club, which had been established in 1872, 
threw open for public inspection its new quarters in 
the American Express Company Building, on Monroe 
Street. 

The club remained in these quarters until Central 
Music Hall (southeast corner of State and Randolph 
Streets) was opened in 1879. 

^ITIn the Eighties Monroe Street was the center of the 
*-^paper, printing and kindred trades. While the print- 
ing trade has drifted south and likewise many of the 
paper houses, every paper house handling fine writing 
papers had its business home upon Monroe Street in 
those days. 

Most of the typefounders, either past or present, 
of any importance, have been located at one time or 
another on Monroe Street, between Clark and Franklin 
Streets; among them: The American Type Founders 
Company, Barnhart Bros. & Spindler, and the old 
houses of S. P. Rounds and Marder Luse & Com- 
pany. 

^IT Among the printers whose offices were upon Monroe 
^Street, the following were located upon the present 
site of the Central Trust Company of Illinois, 125 
West Monroe Street (then occupied by the Rand- 
McNally Building): 

Rand, McNally & Co. Goes Lithographing Co. 

Hollister Bros. Harmegnies & Howell. 

Pettibone, Wells & Co., later P. F. Pettibone & Co. 
Located next door east in the six-story Taylor 
Building (the present site of the Harris Trust & Savings 
Bank), were, among others, the following well-known 
printing houses: 



The 
Apollo Club 



Head- 
quarters 
for Printing 
and Paper 
Business 



Harris Trust 

Building 

Site 



67 



rt-. 







STURGES LOT WAITING FOR A BUYER 



68 



R. R. Donnelley & Sons. Geo. E. Marshall & Co., 

S. D. Childs & Co. later Marshall-Jack- 

Juergens Bros. son Co. 

Other prominent printers, located at that time on 
Monroe Street, between Clark and Franklin Streets, 
were: 



Inland Printer Publishing 

Co. 
H. S. Tiffany & Co. 
Donohue & Henneberry. 
Barrett's Bindery. 
J. J. Hanlon Co. 
Shattock & McKay. 
Hale-Crossley Co. 
Herschman & Cardy. 
J. B. Ruling. 



Law Bulletin Publishing 
Co. 

Blomgren Bros. & Co. 

Chicago Legal News Co. 

Jefferson Theater Pro- 
gram Co. 

Pereira Bros. 

Rayner & Dalheim Co. 

Schulkins & Co. 

H. O. Shepard Co. 



^TT Among the large paper houses located on Monroe 
^Street was the J. W. Butler Paper Company, whose 
business was started in 1841 at St. Charles, 111. 

The company opened its Chicago house in 1844, 
and moved on Monroe Street in 1869. They have 
occupied their present building at 221 West Monroe 
Street since 1875. 

The 90-foot lot upon which stands their present 
building was sold on July 2, 1836, by the State of 
Illinois to Clements Stose for $82, and was sold on 
March 17, 1868, by Clements Stose to Brown Bros, for 
$25,000. 

^TT Another old established paper house is Bradner 
^-^'^ Smith & Company, which has been in business in 
Chicago since 1852. They moved on Monroe Street 
soon after the Fire, and are now located at 175 West 
Monroe Street. 



Other 
Printers 



Well-known 

Paper 

Houses 



Early 

Real Estate 
Values 



69 



Historic 
Site 



Iroquois 
Club 



Land that 

Kept on 

Going Up 



This old paper house occupies the west half of the 
historic site upon which stood North's Circus, that 
furnished entertainment to so many of Chicago's 
citizens in the Fifties. 

^TTThe Iroquois Club, now located at 21 North LaSalle 
*-*^ Street, was born on Monroe Street. It started origi- 
nally as the Chicago Democratic Club in the Reading 
Room of the Palmer House in 1880, and held its busi- 
ness meetings there for several months. 

In October, 1881, the name of the club was changed 
to the Iroquois Club; and in December of that year 
they took permanent quarters on the third floor of 
Haverly's Theater, on Monroe Street. 

In 1886 the growing membership made it necessary 
for them to occupy all space in that building above the 
ground floor, the name of the theater having been 
changed at that time to Columbia Theater. 

^JTAn interesting sidelight on the fortunes in real 
*-^ estate on Monroe Street in the early days is con- 
tained in the history of the 90-foot lot next east to 
that now occupied by the Central Trust Company of 
Illinois. 

As stated on page 44, this lot was occupied before 
the Fire by Frank Sturges & Company, metals and 
tinners' stock. After the destruction of this property 
in the Great Fire in 1871, George Sturges, who was later 
President of the Northwestern National Bank, had to 
take the lot from his brother Frank, to whom he had 
previously made some advances. 

Mr. George Sturges was not partial to real estate 
as an investment, preferring to have his investments in 
more liquid form; and he therefore allowed the lot to 
remain vacant, covered for a long time with the debris 
of the fire. 



70 




BATTERY D ARMORY ON THE LAKE FRONT 
(See description on pages 72 and 74) 



From a photograph, through the 
courtesv of Mr. C. R. Clark 



71 



Waiting 

for Some 

Fool 



Second 
Thoughts 



Battery D 
Armory 



An 

Institute 

Used 

Battery D 



When asked by his friends what he intended to do 
with the lot, he replied: "Oh, I am waiting until some 
fool comes along who wants it more than I do." 

However, when a prospective purchaser did come 
along and inquired whether he could buy the lot for 
$50,000, Mr. Sturges said: "Oh, no. If you had said 
$75,000 I might think it over." 

It appears that the purchaser likewise wanted to 
think it over, and, after about six months, came back, 
saying that while he considered it a heavy price, he 
thought he might be able to use it for $75,000. Mr. 
Sturges then told him that he had changed his mind in 
the last six months and the price was now $100,000. 

That sale did not go through. However, Mr. 
Sturges did sell the property, in the latter half of the 
Seventies, to Mr. John Borden for $100,000. 

Mr. Borden held the property until August, 1909, 
when he sold it for approximately a million dollars! 

^]r Battery D Armory was erected on the Lake Front 
^in 1880, and fronted on the north line of Monroe 
Street. 

This battery was started by some Civil War 
veterans as an independent organization as a result of 
the great riots of 1877, but was later incorporated into 
the Illinois National Guard, although the building was 
never taken over by the state. At that time its 
armament consisted of four 12-pound Napoleons, two 
6-pounders and a gatling gun. 

Aside from its military uses, the building was 
frequently used for public meetings and entertainments. 

The Art Institute classes were held in Battery D 
for a while, in 1882-3, pending the completion of the 
Art Institute Building, southwest corner of Michigan 
Avenue and Van Buren Street. 



72 






TEMPORARY POST OFFICE ON THE LAKE FRONT 
On the former site of Battery D 



From a photograph, through 
courtesy oj Mr. C. R. Clark 



73 



Art 
Versus 
Boxing 



Temporary 
Post Office 



Chicago 

Literary 

Club 



Many other 
Landmarks 



It appears that it occasionally required some 
pretty quick work to put the building into suitable 
condition for the morning art classes, after it had been 
used the night before for a boxing match or a ball. The 
building was finally torn down in 1896, to make room 
for the temporary brick Post Office Building erected 
on that site and used as a Post Office from 1896 to 1905. 

^TTThe Chicago Literary Club was organized in 1881 
*-^or 1882, and held its first meetings in a room on one 
of the upper floors of the American Express Company 
Building, No. 76-8 Monroe Street. 

The Chicago Literary Club is still in existence, and 
holds its meetings in the rooms of the Caxton Club, in 
the Fine Arts Building. Mr. W. M. R. French, 
Director of the Art Institute, was elected the fortieth 
President of the club in 1912, and is also a charter 
member. The President of the club at this time is Mr. 
Walter L. Fisher, formerly Secretary of the Interior. 

^JT There are a number of old buildings on Monroe 
»-^ Street, not mentioned in this sketch, dating back to 
the Seventies and early Eighties, whose history it would 
be interesting to follow; but the limits set for this little 
publication have already been considerably exceeded, 
and it must be left to some future compiler to complete 
the work that has been begun in these scattered notes. 
These old five-story buildings of the Seventies, to 
many of which two stories were added in later years, 
look somewhat weather-worn and dingy now, but 
there was a time when they looked as bright and 
attractive, and inspired the same wonder and admira- 
tion, as do the bright new skyscrapers beside them 
today. The wrecker is patiently waiting for these 
landmarks of Chicago's early progress, and, after the 
present leases expire, they will soon be only a memory. 



74 




From a photograph, through the courtesy of Mr. C. R. Clark 

^JTThe above picture shows the southeast corner of 
<-^ Monroe and LaSalle Streets before the erection of 
the new Borland Block, which occupies the corner at 
the present time. The picture also shows the nine-story 
Calumet Block, on the corner of the alley at LaSalle 
Street, which is being torn down to be replaced by an 
addition to the Borland Block, making the building 
uniform from Monroe Street to the alley. 

The ground floor of this new addition to the Borland 
Block will be occupied by the Central Trust Company 
of Illinois, and will be connected with their present 
main banking office fronting on Monroe Street, so that 
there will be an entrance to the bank both from LaSalle 
and Monroe Streets. 

75 



Monroe 
and LaSalle 
Streets 



Central Trust 

Company 

Addition 




CENTRAL TRUST COMPANY OF ILLINOIS, CHICAGO 



Capital $4,500,000.00 

Surplus and Undivided Profits 2,100,000.00 



76 



CENTRAL TRUST COMPANY 
OF ILLINOIS — — CHICAGO 



OFFICERS 



Charles G. Dawes 
Joseph E. Otis 
Edwin F. Mack 
William T. Abbott 
Walter H. Wilson 
William R. Dawes Vice- 

J. E. LiNDQUIST 

William C. Cook 

T. C. Neal 

Fred B. Woodland 



President 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 
Pres. & Cashier 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 
Vice-President 



L. D. Skinner 
Wm. W. Gates 
Jno. W. Thomas 
Harry R. Moore 
Addison Corneau 
Howard S. Camp 
Albert G. Mang 
William G. Edens 
John L. Lehnhard 
Lloyd R. Steere 



Assistant Cashier 

Assistant Cashier 

Assistant Cashier 

Assistant Cashier 

Assistant Cashier 

Assistant Cashier 

Secretary 

Assistant Secretary 

Asst. Trust Ofificer 

Probate Officer 



DIRECTORS 



A. J. Earling 

President Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul R'y 
Company 

Arthur Dixon 

President Arthur Dixon Transfer Company 

Charles T. Boynton 

Pickands, Brown & Company 

Alexander H. Revell 

President Alexander H. Revell & Company 

S. M. Felton 

President Chicago Great Western Railroad 
Company 

T W. Robinson 

Vice-President Illinois Steel Company 

Chandler B. Beach 

C. B. Beach & Company 

George F. Steele, Chicago 
Max Pam 

Pam & Hurd 

Z. G. Simmons 

President Simmons Mfg. Company. Kenosha 

H. A. Langhorst 

President Albert Schwill & Company 

A. Uhrlaub 

Vice-President Colonial Land Company 

A. R. Barnes 

a. R. Barnes & Company 



William T. Abbott 

Vice-President Central Trust Company of 
Illinois 

Howard G. Hetzler 

President Chicago & Western Indiana Railroad 

Walter H. Wilson 

Vice-President Central Trust Company of 
Illinois 

Joseph E. Otis 

Vice-President Central Trust Co. of Illinois 

George Woodland 

Chairman Advisory Committee Central Trust 
Co. of Illinois 

Burton F. Peek 

Vice-President Deere & Company, Moline 

James W. Stevens 

President Illinois Life Insurance Company 

W. O. Johnson 

General Counsel and Director Chicago & 
Erie R. R. 

R. Floyd Clinch 

Crerar, Clinch & Company 

William C. Boyden 

Matz, Fisher & Boyden, Attorneys 

C. B. SCOVILLE 

Real Estate, Oak Park and Chicago 

Charles G. Dawes 

Ex-Comptroller of Currency 



77 




CENTRAL TRUST COMPANY OF ILLINOIS 
Left side of Main Banking Room (at level of sidewalk) 



78 




>w» 



^. 



CENTRAL TRUST COMPANY OF ILLINOIS 
Right side of Main Banking Room 



79 




CENTRAL TRUST COMPANY 



Interior 

Central 

Trust 

Company 



^TTUpon entering the banking room of the Central 
<-^ Trust Company of IlUnois the visitor is at once 
impressed by the beautiful, commodious interior and 
the absence of all columns or other supports. Thus 
an unobstructed view is gained at one glance. 

The white walls of delicately patterned marble, 
from famous Italian quarries, rise to a height of some 
fifty feet. On these are shown, at regular intervals 
sixteen large mural paintings by Lawrence C. Earle, 
depicting progressive periods in Chicago's history — 
from the rough winter quarters of Father Marquette, 
1674, to the magnificent Court of Honor, World's Fair, 
1893. 

Surmounting all this is the beautiful stained glass 
ceiling through which the light is diffused, giving a soft, 
quiet tone to the bank's interior. 

The main banking floor is practically at the level 
of the sidewalk, making it unnecessary for the patrons 



80 



of the bank to climb any steps or stairways, either upon 
entering or leaving the bank. 

In the rear of the main banking floor is located a 
massive white marble structure containing ten heavy 
steel vaults, in which the cash and books of the bank 
are kept. This structure rises upon its own heavy 
foundations, and looks as impregnable as it does 
artistic. 

The General Banking Department, Savings De- 
partment and Bond Department are all located on the 
main floor. An elevator takes the customers to the 
Trust Department, on the second floor, and to the 
Real Estate Loan Department, on the third floor. As 
there are no other tenants in the building, the elevator 
service is restricted entirely to the patrons of the bank. 

Underneath the main banking quarters are located 
the Safe Deposit Vaults, reached by a broad marble 
stairway from the main banking room and also by an 
elevator from the entrance hall. 

Such a building seems to be a fitting climax in the 
growth of Old Monroe Street — a street which has 
acquired a leading place in the history of banking 
in Chicago. 



Massive 
Vaults 



Various 
Departments 




81 



Banking on Human Interests 
and Principles 

Tlie Central Trust Comtiany or Illinois Delieves tnat real bank- 
ing service is more tnan a matter of mere cash principal ana interest — 

1 nat true service is based on human interests ana principles. 

Liet us apply it. 

A wise father starts a savings account here for nis son — 

lo tne Doy tins at first represents only so muck money saved. 

As time goes on he learns tnat this bank means more to him 
than a place to put his savings. 

lie gets the banking habit, comes in contact with, bank ofncials 
who take an interest m him, forms a bank relationshi;^ — far more 
than a mere acquaintanceshi'^. 

He becomes known at the bank. 

Schooldays pass. Business or professional opportunities come. 
rie seeks this bank s advice, it is cheerfully given and well given. 

rle learns that character, individuality, personality, or what- 
ever else you may wish to call it, is a real asset — one that he can hank 
on, one that will be of real help to him m his business. 

in the placing of his investments he consults w^ith our real 
estate loan department, or our bond department, xdere again this 
bank s interest and advice are valuable. 

l^ater he makes us executor of his estate, knowing that our 
charges cannot be higher than those of a private individual, and that 
everything will be done promptly, correctly, economically, and safely. 

For this IS his bank. The bank knows him~ guides him in all 
matters financial, just as his family physician advises him on matters 
of health, based on a like intimate knowledge of him and his needs. 

1 o get the hest out of your bank, choose it now for its strength, 
safety, and service, stay with it. and grow with it. 

This Bank. 



82 



Central Trust Company 

or Illinois - Cnicago 

125 West Monroe Street, tet-ween La Salle and Clark Streets 



Bantling Department. Every facility for handling tlie clieckmg ac- 
counts of individuals, firms and corf)orations. Interest allowed on sat- 
isfactory balances. Demand and time certificates of deposit issued. 

Trust Department. Authorized oy law to accefjt trusts of all 
kinds. It has excefjtional facilities for the work required in all 
fiduciary relations, such as administrator, guardian, custodian, con- 
servator, or trustee; also registrar and transler agent of cor|)orations. 

Savings De^artynent. 1 liree Jjer cent allowed on savings de{)OSits. 
Ot)en Mondays from 10 a. m. continuously until 8 p. m. 

Bona Department. Buys and sells U. S. Government, foreign 
government, state, municipal, railroad, public service, corporation and 
Dvulding bonds. List of investments yielding 4/^2% to 6% on ap- 
plication. 

Real Estate Loan Department. High-grade real estate bonds 

and mortgages, netting 5% to 6%, for sale. Mortgage loans 
negotiated on well located, improved Cliicago and suburban prop- 
erty. Building loans a specialty. 

Foreign Exchange Department. Travelers' letters of credit and 
travelers cnecks issued, available in all parts of tlie world. Com- 
mercial letters of credit sold. 

Safe Deposit vaults. Difierent sizes and styles of boxes, rent- 
ing irom $0.00 a year upward. Separate storage rooms lor trunks 
and bulky packages. Special accommodations for women. 

Banking Hours. Open from 10 a. m. to 3 p. m. Saturdays 
y a.m. to \2i noon. 1 be safe deposit vault liours are 9 a. m. to 
D p. m. Saturdays 9 a. m. to 1 p. m. 



83 






LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




016 097 308 0» 



